2 weeks Ago By Devika Desai
Local artists and studios on the lookout for new opportunities in downtown Calgary may soon find what they’re looking for at the historic Fire Hall No. 1 and North-West Travellers building in the downtown. The city has partnered with cSpace, a local arts incubator, to revitalize the buildings into a downtown arts and culture hub, supporting Calgary’s arts community.
The project is still in early stages, according to Ryan Meier, the city’s manager of facility planning, with the city still exploring how the spaces can be used. The idea of turning the buildings into an arts and culture hub was first brought forward by council in 2019, he said. Until then, the Historic Fire Hall No.
1, built in 1911, and the North-West Travellers Building, constructed in 1912, had been used as official and educational spaces by smaller companies. The fire hall, after serving as the home of the city’s fire department until 1973, was leased by Budget Rent-a-Car until 2019. The North-West Travellers Building was used by various businesses, including a group using the space to learn English as a second language, according to Meier.
“They’re both very important historic buildings in our downtown and there’s a real opportunity to leverage them for something great,” he said. Engagement with the arts and culture community on the opportunities — and the gaps needing to be addressed — strengthened an overall vision for the hub, he added. “It’s really those smaller artist studios that build and support artists earlier on in their career to develop and grow, but also supporting those that are more established but also need spaces to be able to do their craft,” he said.
The city put out an “expression of interest” in late 2023 into early 2024, and partnered with cSpace to work on the project, due to the organization’s success with similar projects, including the reimagined King Edward School in Marda Loop. The idea, Meier said, is to do something similar in downtown as cSpace did in Marda Loop. The city is currently working with the organization to develop a business case and a vision for those spaces.
The project would be funded via partnerships created with other parties. “cSpace is already talking to lots of different organizations about what those opportunities are,” he said. “That’s part of what this business case will deliver.
” It’s too early to estimate a budget for the project, he said, noting more details are expected later this year. [email protected].
